Video shows gender-reveal mishap that led to 47K-acre wildfire

ARIZONA – Border Patrol agent Dennis Dickey was celebrating with family and friends during a gender reveal party on April 23, 2017 when things went very wrong, very fast.

Video has just been obtained by the Arizona Daily star showing the moment Dickey, who was celebrating with his expectant wife, accidentally ignited a fire with an explosive target that shot blue smoke and flames onto dry grassland in the Santa Rita Mountain area.

He pleaded guilty in September to a misdemeanor charge of causing a fire without a permit and agreed to pay a $220,000 fine, according to the Arizona Daily Star.

The newspaper also reported that the exploding target contained tannerite, a legal substance that explodes when shot by a firearm.

The fire burned 47,000 acres. It took almost 800 firefighters at a cost of $8.2 million to extinguish.

Watch the video, obtained by the Daily Star, below:

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About the Author:

Mary Claire Patton has been a journalist with KSAT 12 since 2015. She has reported on several high-profile stories during her career at KSAT and specializes in trending news and things to do around Texas and San Antonio.